Victor Negron-Garcia was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and given very few months to live without a transplant. He was referred to Houston for evaluation and put on the transplant list. Just six weeks later, he received the call that a donor heart was available for him. He was 48 years old.

Victor Negron-Garcia is shown with Dr. Bud Frazier at the heart transplant program 25th anniversary celebration.

"I had a few complications but not big things, never any rejection problems. I was out of the hospital in less than a month," said Mr. Negron-Garcia. "It was like a second life, a new life because I was in very bad shape before the transplant. Then I had the possibility of becoming a new human being thanks to the generosity of a donor – another very human being – who gave me the chance of living."

Mr. Negron-Garcia’s son, Jorge, was a sophomore at Rice University when his father came to Houston for the transplant.

"I remember coming in from classes and my roommate told me my father got the call for a donor heart. I remember camping out in the waiting room with my uncle and the doctor would come out every hour or so and tell us how it was going. I was just back and forth between Rice and the hospital then," he said. "I could tell he felt really good after the transplant. It took a few months but he became a lot livelier. It was so good to see him feel healthier."

Mr. Negron-Garcia returned to work as an electrical engineer and retired at age 60. He continues to enjoy a quiet life with friends and family in Puerto Rico.